Bhashya
ङ्गस्य स्वजात्यसांकर्येणोपचयकरत्वं वक्तव्यं प्राप्तम्, तदिहो-क्तमेव द्रष्टव्यमिति पूर्वोक्तं व्यपदिशति—यथा तु खलु येनप्रकारेण इमाः तेजोबन्नाख्याः तिस्रः देवताः पुरुषं प्राप्यत्रिवृत्त्रिवृदेकैका भवति, तदुक्तं पुरस्तादेव भवति ‘अन्नम-शितं त्रेधा विधीयते’ इत्यादि तत्रैवोक्तम् ।अन्नादीनामशि-तानां ये मध्यमा धातवः, ते साप्तधातुर्क शरीरमुपचिन्वन्ती-त्युक्तम्—मांसं भवति लोहितं भवति मज्जा भवति अस्थिभवतीति ।ये त्वणिष्ठा धातवः मनः प्राणं वाचं देहस्यान्तःकर-णसंघातमुपचिन्वन्तीति च उक्तम्—तन्मनो भवति सं प्राणोभवति स वाग्भवतीति ।सोऽयं प्राणकरणसंघातः देहे वि-शीर्णे देहान्तरं जीवाधिष्ठितः येन क्रमेण पूर्वदेहात्प्रच्युतःगच्छति, तदाह—अस्य हे सोम्य पुरुषस्य प्रयतः म्रियमा-णस्य वाक् मनसि संपद्यते मनस्युपसंह्रियते ।अथ तदाहुःज्ञातयो न वदतीति ।मनःपूर्वको हि वाग्व्यापारः, ‘यद्वैमनसा ध्यायति तद्वाचा वदति’ इति श्रुतेः ।वाच्युपसंहृ-तायां मनसि मननव्यापारेण केवलेन वर्तते ।मनोऽपि यदाउपसंह्रियते, तदा मनः प्राणे संपन्नं भवति—सुषुप्तकाले इव;तदा पार्श्वस्था ज्ञातयः न विजानातीत्याहुः ।प्राणश्च तदोर्ध्वो-च्छ्वासी स्वात्मन्युपसंहृतबाह्यकरणः संवर्गविद्यायां दर्शनात्हस्तपादादीन्विक्षिपन् मर्मस्थानानि निकृन्तन्निव उत्सृजन् क्रमेणोपसंहृतः तेजसि संपद्यते ; तदाहुः ज्ञातयो न चलतीति ।मृतः नेति वा विचिकित्सन्तः देहमालभमानाः उष्णं च उपलभमानाः देहः उष्णः जीवतीति यदा तदप्यौष्ण्यलिङ्गं तेज उपसंह्रियते, तदा तत्तेजः परस्यां देवतायां प्रशाम्यति ।तदैवं क्रमेणोपसंहृते स्वमूलं प्राप्ते च मनसि तत्स्थो जीवोऽपि सुषुप्तकालवत् निमित्तोपसंहारादुपसंह्रियमाणः सन् सत्याभिसंधिपूर्वकं चेदुपसंह्रियते सदेव संपद्यते न पुनर्देहान्तराय सुषुप्तादिवोत्तिष्ठति, यथा लोके सभये देशे वर्तमानः कथंचिदिवाभयं देशं प्राप्तः - तद्वत् ।इतरस्तु अनात्मज्ञः तस्मादेव मूलात् सुषुप्तादिवोत्थाय मृत्वा पुनर्देहजालमाविशति यस्मान्मूलादुत्थाय देहमाविशति जीवः ॥
In plain words
The way our physical body is built up by the elements must be understood. As explained earlier, when the three elements of fire, water, and earth are consumed, they divide. Their medium portions build the physical tissues—flesh, blood, marrow, and bone—while their subtlest portions sustain the mind, the life-breath, and speech. At the time of death, this entire inner system, gathered around the conscious soul, prepares to depart. First, speech dissolves into the mind, and relatives say, 'He can no longer speak.' The mind continues to think, but when it too dissolves into the life-breath, they say, 'He no longer recognizes us.' Finally, as the breath gasps upward and gathers the last warmth into itself, it dissolves into the element of fire, and they say, 'He does not move.' They touch the body, feeling for warmth, wondering if life remains. When that final warmth dissolves into the Supreme Deity, the journey is complete. If the soul departs in the realization of Truth, it merges forever into Pure Being, never to wake again into a physical body. But the one who dies in ignorance wakes from that unmanifest state only to enter the net of physical birth once more.
Close to the Sanskrit
The capacity of the bodily constituents to cause nourishment without mixing with their own class must be explained; that is indicated here as already stated. Just as these three deities—fire, water, and food—entering a person, each becomes threefold, that has been stated earlier. The medium constituents of food and others eaten build up the seven-fold body: flesh, blood, marrow, and bone. The subtlest constituents build up the mind, breath, and speech. This assembly of vital forces and organs, presided over by the soul, when the body is decayed, departs from the previous body. Thus it says: of this dying person, speech is resolved in the mind. Then relatives say, 'He does not speak.' When speech is withdrawn, he exists in the mind through thinking alone. When the mind also is withdrawn, it merges in the breath, as in deep sleep; then relatives say, 'He does not recognize.' The breath, gasping upwards, having withdrawn external organs, is resolved in fire; then they say, 'He does not move.' Doubting whether he is dead or not, touching the body and finding warmth, they say, 'He is warm, he lives.' When that warmth is withdrawn, it resolves in the supreme deity. Thus, when everything is resolved in its root, the soul residing there, if resolved with commitment to truth, becomes Pure Being and does not rise again for another body; but the ignorant one, arising from that root, enters the net of body again.